Posted by Gary Bell on Wednesday 18th August 2010 | Birding in Shetland

While checking on my local patch of Sumburgh on 10/08/10, I was fortunate to discover a Greenish Warbler in the Sumburgh hotel garden, species no. 115 of the year and one you could far from guarantee in the area. It’s a species that requires a bit of thought to its identity, the white feathering at the base of the bill, shorter primary projection, pale lower mandible of the bill and slightly broader supercilium after the eye all help to identify it, although the latter can vary a bit on warblers depending on their head position. These features, which can be seen in the photos, separate it from the similar Arctic Warbler.

After 20 minutes of observation the bird called a rapid tzi-eet further aiding the identification.

Gary Bell